Prosecutors in Taiwan are taking legal action against David Pan, the founder of Ace Exchange, a local cryptocurrency trading platform. On April 8, Pan was indicted, along with six other suspects, on charges of money laundering and fraud, which resulted in losses of 340 million New Taiwan dollars ($10.6 million).
Earlier this year, in January 2024, Pan and 14 others allegedly involved in the case were arrested by Taipei City police following raids on various locations, including Ace’s headquarters.
During the investigation, prosecutors discovered that Pan was associated with a fraudulent cryptocurrency wallet service known as “Alfred” or “Afu wallet,” as well as a related crypto card. The suspects deceived customers by offering a service based on a classic high-reward promise model through offline over-the-counter exchanges and fake investment groups. Once investors deposited their funds, they were unable to withdraw them or found that their accounts were blocked.
A Taiwanese court has ruled that the defendant’s property should be seized, with some assets worth at least 3.5 million NT$ ($110,000) confiscated.
In response to the indictment, Ace Exchange released a statement on April 8, reiterating that Pan and his fraudulent activities had no connection to the platform. The exchange claimed that Pan had ceased his involvement in day-to-day operations in 2022 and emphasized that the wallet product was developed by a third-party team entrusted by Pan, not by Ace Exchange itself. The firm stated that it was cooperating with local authorities.
Ace Exchange is a lesser-known centralized crypto exchange based in Taiwan. According to CoinMarketCap, the platform was launched in late 2018 and has a daily trading volume of around $14 million.
However, according to data from Traders Union, Ace Exchange is considered a “high-risk cryptocurrency exchange” with a trust score of 2.78 out of 10.
Cointelegraph reached out to Ace Exchange for comments regarding the indictment details but did not receive a response at the time of publication.